On March 31, the Wedbush Organization of Women (WOW) concluded Women’s History Month with an interactive workshop. The virtual session expanded upon our International Women’s Day event, which encouraged colleagues, especially women, to communicate their value when the stakes are high.

Nancy Medoff, Coach and Founder of Athenawise, was once again our featured speaker. Medoff, a global persuasion and negotiation expert, shared an insightful presentation, aptly named “Unmute Yourself, Speak Up and Stand Out.”

Medoff began the presentation by discussing the three principles of persuasion. First is “The Rule of Three,” an idea that adults retain information best in sets of threes. Second, Medoff advised that colleagues should not only talk about themselves in conversation, but rather focus on listening to their audience. The third principle of persuasion was the “So What?”, or the idea that it is essential to always communicate why your skills are important to the firm.

The next part of the presentation included an exercise where the audience practiced their power positioning statements. Several brave and empowered employees spoke up and shared their positioning statement.

The audience was then divided into different networking groups to discuss their own personal power statement with colleagues. To conclude, Nancy Medoff ended the workshop by emphasizing the importance of “raising your hand” and speaking up. She also shared a quote from Sheryl Sandberg: “If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, you don’t ask what seat. You just get on.”

Kirsten Fraunces, EVP and Head of Capital Markets, presented closing remarks about our diversity networks that are in place “to create community” and a stronger future for the firm. Explore the ways our firm supports the advancement of female colleagues through the Wedbush Organization of Women (WOW).